Smugglers, Forced Labor and Kidnapping all Under the
Streets of Portland

One
of the many titles announced at Image Expo 2018 was the June launching series
Shanghai Red from Christopher Sebela, Joshua Hixson and Hassan Otsmane Elhaou.
The series is set in Portland and follows the world of the underground. There
are massive tunnels running all underneath Portland that connect multiple
locations together so that ships could sail under the city and transport goods
and services. The tunnels were used for legal purposes but were notorious for
moving illegal shipments and recruiting ship crews of kidnapped people forced to
sail on them. One of the characters seen in the upcoming series is Red, one of
the people kidnapped and forced into labor. Sebela learned of life underneath
the city when he moved to Portland in 2010. He learned that the Shanghai tunnels
ran through the Old Town and Chinatown sections of downtown Portland. All led
from the waterfront to the basements of hotels, bars and the like to get goods
from place to place avoiding street traffic. Certain sections were taken over by
the Tongs who built underground gambling operations, brothels and opium dens.
Some of their customers were drugged and forced into labor. The tunnels were
also used so the Chinese could escape from the cops. In the story we will see
how Red ended up trapped on the boat and how she took on the persona of Jack in
order to survive. Jack is who she becomes when she needs to let go but as the
series continues that will become harder and harder.